1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates generally to modular office furniture. The present invention specifically relates to support stanchions for modular, free standing open-plan office furniture having unitary internal power routing facilities, and provision for selective mounting of plural electric and electronic accessories.
2. State of The Prior Art
In the modern office environment, ready accessibility to electrical power is highly desirable. In today's office, common furniture such as desks and other work surfaces must coexist with a variety of electric and electronic equipment such as telephones, clocks, computers, adding machines, and many other types of devices. However, since office furniture is generally chosen and installed long after basic electrical service is installed in a typical office or office building, providing electrical service close to or mounted in a desk or work surface is difficult. Typically, office workers must use extension cords, multiple-outlet junction boxes, and other cumbersome and potentially dangerous means to route electrical power to a convenient location near the desk surface.
Prior inventors have attempted to combine electrical power service with furniture in various ways. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,862,785 (Scheerhorn, et al) discloses a secretarial work station including a work surface, end walls, a shelf and a partitioned upper portion which may receive a telephonic unit in one end. However, the work station of Scheerhorn, et al does not provide standard 120 VAC electrical service outlets for connection to different articles.
Another means for supplying power to particular places in an open-plan office is to use a floor-to-ceiling service pole such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,284,840 (Baker). The Baker patent provides plural outlets mounted in an elongated pole which extends from the floor to the ceiling. Electrical wiring is routed into the pole and connects to outlets. However, use of a service pole requires placing an obstacle in the office, which may affect furniture placement, and also requires running an extension cord to a desk, work surface, or other devices desired to be attached to the electrical service.
Still other inventors have attempted to integrate electrical service and office furniture by building the electrical facilities into the work surface. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,792,881 (Wilson et al) discloses a work surface with a power and communication module set into the rear portion of a work surface. The module includes plural outlets set into a power strip, and communications facilities provided in a module. The entire apparatus is located in a recess below the work surface and is accessible by lifting a hinged panel. However, the placement of the power module in the rear lateral portion of the work surface effectively precludes use of that area of the work surface for office work. Since access to space by lifting panel may be required at any time to connect or disconnect electrical cables to the outlets, an office worker would have to move any objects placed on panel to access space. Further, the Wilson et al disclosure requires complex manufacturing processes to produce a desk top having the proper cutout space to accommodate the power and communication module.
Another approach is to mount utility service in a wall immediately adjacent to the work surface, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,229 (Menchetti) which shows an office environment having a suspended ceiling, wall panels, and a false wall panel behind which are located a telephone outlet module and an electrical service receptacle. Electrical power is routed to the sides of the modules by wiring placed behind the false wall panel in the cavity of the wall structure. However, using the arrangement disclosed by Menchetti requires that the vertical wall surface be located immediately adjacent to the work surface or desk, an arrangement which may be undesirable to some office workers and office furniture designers.
Finally, attempts have been made to facilitate wiring near or within a desk surface by providing a wiring support located immediately below the work surface, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,114,584 (Wilmer). However, the wiring support of Wilmer does not fully enclose the wires or cables, but merely supports them on an elongated terminal block using brackets installed beneath the desk. This arrangement is undesirable in some office environments, since exposed wiring may be jostled, disturbed, or even severed.
Thus, there is a need for an apparatus for supporting and locating electrical service outlets immediately adjacent to and conveniently located near an ergometric work surface or desk top. The present invention is directed toward fitting that need.